The Madison Mallards (39-17, 11-9) had their nine game winning streak halted by an outstanding pitching performance by the Rockford Rivets (23-32, 5-16) Friday night in Rockford. Rivets starting pitcher Tyler Thornton struck out eleven Mallards in six and one-third innings, to lead the Rivets to a 7-2 victory.
Turning Point
The Mallards were in a tight 2-0 pitching duel entering the bottom of the fourth inning, but five Madison errors allowed three unearned runs to score and provided the Rivets with a 5-0 lead through five innings. Madison broke through against Thornton in the top of the seventh with back-to-back doubles by David Vinsky (Northwood) and Justice Bigbie (Western Carolina), and a RBI grounder by Cal Greenfield (Florida) to make the score 5-2, but the Mallards could get no closer. Two more Rivets runs on a two-RBI flare over a drawn-in infield in the bottom of the seventh ended the scoring, and resulted in the 7-2 Rockford win.
Top Mallards
• Turner French (St. Johns) struck out four in his two innings of relief work
• Tyler Plantier (Richmond) reached base twice with a single and a walk
• David Vinsky ripped a double off the left field wall, scored a run, and drew a walk
• Justice Bigbie smoked a RBI double against the right field fence and scored a run
Next Up
The Mallards return home Saturday, July 28 and Sunday, July 29 for two games against the Kalamazoo Growlers. The Growlers currently have the second best overall record in the South Division at 35-21, four games behind the Mallards. Madison beat the Growlers three games out of four in the first half. Following Saturday night’s game there will be the final post-game fireworks display of the 2018 season. Join the Mallards Sunday for Harry Potter Night with a Hermillone bobblehead giveaway courtesy of Zimbrick Honda. Playoff tickets for the Mallards first round home game on Monday, August 13 are also on sale now. To purchase tickets for any of these games, visit MallardsBaseball.com. Listen to all Mallards game action on the Zone, 1670 AM, 96.7 FM.
